Episode 60
The year D1000 (also known as N0), Mistyshore. Ran takes a stroll with his mother. He complains about classes, but Hana points out that he never misses one. She guesses correctly that it's because of Rana. Ran wants to reassure her that she's only a friend, but Hana points out that she doesn't share his uncle's opinion. After all, she herself is a Half, but she married a pureblood. She adds that her parents differed even more: her father was a Quarter, a 30-year-old blind magician who appeared 15. Her mother lacked the concept of aging altogether, as she was the highest level of sura, a nastika. Ran doesn't believe her, as he heard that nastikas apart from dragons had no interest in humans. Hana admits that she's also skeptical of her father's claims, and believes her mother was probably a rakshasa. Ran decides to start courting Rana, but Hana tells him not to. She explains that the shorter-lived eventually become self-conscious and distant, while those who live longer also love longer. She wants him to find someone who will live longer than him so he won't be hurt. Surprised, Ran asks her if she has problems with his father, since they seem to be estranged. However, Hana decides to head to a meat buffet she spotted earlier. She reassures Ran that even if she fights with her husband, she'll never leave Ran behind, and will always love him best. At the buffet, Agwen offers to take Asha to Kalibloom within a day, thanks to having the 'fastest car on this star.' Asha tells her it isn't needed, since she needs to visit the Temple of Chaos, which is only open during the month of Chaos, so they have time. Agwen asks Asha why she's going there, but doesn't inquire further when Asha doesn't respond. Rana suddenly appears and hands Agwen an emergency call for aid from Atera for someone to power the Fire barrier. After reading the report, Agwen hurriedly pays the bills and parts with Asha. Rana then asks Asha if she's traveling alone. Asha points to Yuta and Leez, who are eating a huge amount of meat, as her companions. She describes Yuta as a Half and Leez as a pureblood. Rana warns her that Ran can't travel with a Half, so Asha will either need to find a different magician or exclude the Half from the party. She explains that Ran can't bear to be near Halfs. She starts to explain. During the N0 Cataclysm, planets were being destroyed every day. People scrambled to migrate to planets further away. The gods battled superior suras in space, while magicians, college students, and even academy students fought the rampaging inferior suras. They needed the help of Halfs. Back then, purebloods and Quarters regarded Halfs with goodwill, and believed they would help. However, the Halfs were caught by the strongest case of emotional resonance in all of history, went berserk, and attacked their human friends and lovers, all while siding with the suras. Caught unaware, even stronger magicians ended up killed by their friends, and many people lost loved ones this way. In Agwen's case, her father killed her closest friend, her lover, and her mother. Agwen, being an adult, was strong enough to move on, but Ran was attacked by his mother and couldn't recover from the shock. Spoilers and Trivia Show/Hide Spoilers and Trivia * From Currygom's blog entry for this episode: ** (smiling Agwen): Sorry for being late. I will try my best not to make this mistake again. ** (Ran's grandparents): Like Ran said, it's widely accepted that there are no Halfs with a nastika parent (except for dragons). Why would they think otherwise? Rakshasa Halfs are very rare. Most Halfs are either upani Halfs or have two Half parents. ** (meat buffet): My dad said they look like rice cakes, not meat. ** (Agwen pays): Kasak's normal speed is faster than commercial airlines, but he has trouble maintaining his sura form so he needs to recharge in order to avoid dropping asleep. ** (superior sura fighting): This is an Asura clan sura. Yes, these are the suras who appeared in Asha's magic test as well as the suras who attacked Leez. There are also Halfs from this clan. ** typo fix * The buffet that Asha, Leez, and Yuta go to is the same as the one mentioned by Hana. * Ran mentions that all nastikas except dragons show no interest in humans. This is because dragon nastikas can no longer take female form, so they can only mate with humans (mating between different sura clans is impossible). Even so, this is a rare phenomenon, as they are mostly emotionless. * On Ran's ancestry: ** Hana's father is Nard Lehn. In Currygom's side novel, The Finite, he was briefly Taksaka's sponsor, which allowed Taksaka to enter Mistyshore and court Kasak's mother Ian Rajof. ** Hana's mother is Hanuman, currently King of the Yaksha clan, taking over after Shuri disappeared. We also see her talking to Gandharva in a previous episode. Hanuman, Hana, and Ran all wear their hair in long braids. Only Lutz doesn't appear to have them. ** Nard Lehn and Hanuman separated after a few years under unknown circumstances. For this reason, Hana's memories of her mother could be unclear. ** Both of Ran's parents died as a result of the Cataclysm. In Season 2, we learn that Ran froze them in hopes of having them revived by his aunt, but it was in vain as the spell for resurrection had disappeared. * The emotional resonance of Halfs in N0, and its impact—particularly in Mistyshore as well as on Ran and Agwen—was foreshadowed in multiple ways: ** Mentions of Half sales in Mistyshore, and the fact that there was opposition to a Half rights bill. ** Leez contrasting this with the fact that her mother had Half friends, and wondering why things 'have changed'. ** Examples of inferior suras from the Gandharva clan going berserk due to emotional resonance. Sagara explains how emotional resonance affects both inferior suras and Halfs depending on the emotions of the King, and how those affected can't even distinguish between ally and foe. ** Example of a captured Gandharva half behaving violently as well, with more examples of people in Mistyshore who hate Halfs. ** Flashback of Ran and his mother in Mistyshore. In the flashback, there is no obvious discrimination against Halfs. However, in the present time, there are no signs of his mother. Instead, he is being raised by his uncle and aunt. ** Asha tells Leez that Agwen's Half father wronged his daughter very badly. * What's unusual about the emotional resonance of the year N0: ** We see Halfs from the following clans affected: Yaksha, Gandharva, Asura, Garuda, Kinnara, and Vritra. Basically, all races except the Ananta and Chaos clans, which were not shown here, were affected. ** This normally implies that all the sura kings were angry at the same time. This is unusual, given that the Kinnara and Vritra clans are neutral, and Shuri taught Yuta to keep his mind calm. ** This could also reveal that perhaps, something else caused emotional resonance. * The destruction of planets in N0 is also abnormal. A thousand years ago, after humans started siding with gods, suras started destroying planets in retaliation. Currygom's side novel reveals that to protect humans, Visnu then used his powers to protect inhabited planets from being destroyed by suras. Thus, widespread destruction of planets should not have been possible. References